golden / someone's ugly daughter

II. stun

winter is coming.

leaves started to fall off the trees, leaving behind an eery look but decorating the bland ground with fun colors. you watch the window from the kitchen table with a hot cup of tea in your hands. as usual, you wear your scout uniform, but this time with the matching green coat to keep you warm. inside, the house is very much warm as well. so much so your mother is wearing only a thin, long-sleeved shirt with a long skirt. her sleeves are rolled up as she does the dishes in the sink, humming a tune that you're familiar with. you close your eyes and lean your head back just a little.

life at this very moment was perfect.

you crack your neck and open your eyes to drink from your tea. its hot liquid burns your throat, so you quickly move the cup away and let out a groan. the tea runs down the front of your mouth so you grab a tissue from the center of the table and dab it away, annoyed that it got on your face. najiyah turned the sink off and grabbed the hand towel beside her, turning around to face you as she wiped her hands clean.

"you okay, hun?" she asked, smiling a little.

you finally swallow the liquid and nod. "forgot that it was burning hot for a second there," you joked, looking up at her. she placed the towel back on the counter before grabbing her mug and sitting on the chair across from you. you both took a few sips in silence as she read from her newspaper and you watched out the window. a typical thing you would do at least once a week. silence was never boring with your mother, but comforting.

"maybe i should've made you coffee," she said, interrupting the silence. she looked at you and into your eyes, noticing the droopiness of them and small bags underneath. "have you gotten any sleep this week?"

"not with those people around," you said. "i've been working my ass off ever since they arrived." you took a longer sip of your tea now that it had cooled down.

najiyah nodded her head and picked up her mug. "i see... does your father trust them?"

you only shrugged your shoulders at the mention of him, not bothering to really answer. najiyah waited for you to say anything else, but when you kept quiet, she only rolled her eyes and sighed. "any other news going on?" she asked, a bit annoyed.

you looked at her then back down at your tea. "the commander and dad want to work with them. they have all these weird weapons and tech stuff..." you furrowed your eyebrows. "we have them locked up as prisoners, but i have this fear of them somehow contacting their subordinates. they don't need to send letters to even be in contact with them, mom."

you looked at her with a clear look of distress on your face. "them wanting to cooperate with us seems too good to be true..."

"oh, y/n..." she reached over to grab your hands to squeeze them. you felt a surge of reassurance from her touch, and in that moment, needed a hug from her immediately. you squeezed back tighter and shut your eyes, moving your head down to fully relax.

"you have nothing to worry about, honey," she said. "if they really despised us, they would rather die than work with us. even so, it is a good thing to keep your enemies closer to you than your own friends." she leaned over the table and smiled. "take the advantage."

najiyah squeezed your hands one more time before returning to her drink. you smiled at your mom after feeling a boost of confidence from her. you picked up your mug again and finished your tea in a few gulps. your mother quickly stood up and placed her cup in the sink before exiting the kitchen. you stood up a few moments after and followed in her footsteps. you walked over to the couch in the living room and sat down on the arm of it, both hands in your pockets to keep them warm. your mom came down the stairs and into the living room, holding an envelope in her hand.